JP Bistro brings refreshing change to hotel buffet concept

By John Aglionby

JAKARTA (JP): For years sideboards groaning under mountains of mouthwatering delicacies have attracted diners in droves to five- star hotels. And the eat-as-much-as-you-can offer will probably remain popular for many years to come.

But a subtle wind of change is starting to blow through the city. The Aryaduta, resembling less of a building site every day, is refining the buffet concept in its newly opened JP Bistro restaurant.

There are still tables piled high with food and jack-in-the- boxes can help themselves as often as their stomachs will allow. But only to starters and desserts. Main courses have to be ordered. And at weekends everything is la carte.

This ensures patrons receive at least one entirely fresh course that has not been lying around for ages being poked at and hacked to pieces by others.

I, for one, welcome the change. While jumping up and down is all very well, its attraction is limited and it disrupts conversation. And a main dish should be just that, namely one main dish, not a potpourri of itsy-bitsy offerings.

But dessert has always been my favorite course and so the JP Bistro concept means I can still indulge my sweet tooth at length.

But while it is one thing to come up with the idea, it is another to deliver. Fortunately the Aryaduta, also home to the extremely good Ambiente restaurant, does not disappoint. While the JP does not yet stand for "just perfect" (it is short for Jl. Prapatan in Central Jakarta, the road outside) it is already well on the way to becoming one of the better outlets in town.

From the first bite, I realized I was in for a treat. Going at the weekend I only had one starter but my dill marinated salmon on mustard cream and olive cracker was an excellent combination of flavors and slipped down far too quickly. My friend's pesto marinated oven-dried tomato on bell-pepper salsa and Mozzarella cheese was equally delicious. Even though it is not standard practice here, I have no qualms about swapping mouthfuls of good food.

While the above appetizers had not been on the menu of bistros I had sampled in the Loire Valley or Dordogne, the soups -- such as a Pot au Feu or a mixed bean and vegetable soup with beef bacon -- and main courses were what I had expected; simple dishes without the unnecessary frills one tends to get in restaurants in Jakarta.

I went for a spit roasted marinated rotisserie chicken with mashed potatoes and grilled vegetables. Yes, it was nursery food and yes, I could have cooked it at home, but it is always a good test to see if a restaurant can cook the basic dishes well.

The chicken was plumper than any I had ever seen scampering around a local kampong and tasted delicious, as did the mashed potatoes which were creamy and smooth. My friend's oven-roasted sea bass was equally unpretentious and equally satisfying.

For people who do not want Western food JP Bistro also offers a selection of simple Indonesian dishes, such as rendang in a coconut sauce, fried prawns in spicy chili and tomato sauce and oxtail soup with celery carrots and steamed rice.

When the dessert menu came it became apparent the previous two courses had been merely a warm-up, a gastronomic overture to the climax of the meal. It took me longer to decide between the honey-marinated fresh fruits with frozen banana yogurt, warm apple strudel with cinnamon ice cream on caramel sauce, mango pudding with melon pearls in coconut milk and chocolate obsession than to choose my first two courses.

I eventually settled for the latter, an enormous glass goblet filled with vanilla, pecan and whiskey and chocolate chip ice cream with fudge brownies and pears. Definitely not to be recommended before doing anything more energetic than relaxing by a swimming pool or in front of a television.

People eating alone or those wanting to watch the cooking can sit up at a copper-topped bar in front of the kitchen. Newspapers and magazines are also available.

With the open kitchen dominating the room there are no intimate nooks or crannies and if one sat with one's back to the kitchen JP Bistro would not look very different from other hotels' buffet restaurants. A few more plants and paintings and better lighting would improve the atmosphere enormously.

The prices, while expensive, are no more prohibitive than in other five-star hotels. Three courses cost about Rp 55,000 (US$22.50) excluding drinks, tax and service.